Perspective on Pizza

Ma and Pa Birdsall found themselves in a new predicament: Their little ones—Robin, Jay, and Phoebe—were not so little anymore and could fly off to various outings on their own. What to do?! One morning when Ma pondered a pizza supper the siblings planned to attend that evening, her son happened to mention that she must feel sad since he and his sisters would be gone later. Yes—in fact, she felt tears forming. Though Ma and Pa knew that they could go to the gathering too, they felt compelled to let the three stretch their wings. But wait—Ma and Pa still enjoyed pizza; suddenly Ma’s perspective changed and she noticed a joyful feeling bubbling up. That afternoon, Ma ordered a large pizza for Pa to pick up after work; together that evening, they sipped soda and smacked their lips at their own private pizza party. And before long, their not-so-little ones winged their way back to the nest for a good night’s rest.

Stand

“Fall seven times, stand up eight,” says a proverb I have appreciated since I first heard it years ago. Sadly, I made the mistake of sharing this saying with others. They must have wondered what kind of new math I was touting. They insisted that if you fall seven times, you can stand only the same number of times you fell. Shocked, I counted on my fingers; sure enough, they were right. … Or so I thought. Recently I heard a sermon in which the preacher explained the mathematics behind the adage. He pointed out that the numbers may seem off, but that you must remember to start counting with your initial position: “You start, standing.”

The point is this: When we fall, when we fail, when we make a fool of ourselves by yielding to the flesh, with the Lord’s help we can stand again—each and every time.